The evolution of wireless communication to fifth generation (5G) standards and technologies provides higher data rates and greater capacity with improved reliability and lower latency, which enhances mobile broadband services. 5G technologies also provide new classes of service for vehicular networking, fixed wireless broadband, and the Internet of Things (IoT).
For a class of service, such as enhanced mobile broadband, 5G networks provide higher data rates than conventional cellular systems. However, it is still desirable to use WLAN networks for mobile broadband in various settings, such as a home or office, or to reduce power consumption in mobile devices.
Offloading data traffic from a cellular network to a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) and handing over network connections from cellular to WLAN (e.g., Wi-Fi) reduces the cost of data transmission for end users and network operators. However, conventional techniques for interoperability between cellular and WLANs lack core network interfaces (reference points), gateways, and management interfaces to cohesively manage cellular and WLAN infrastructure, which results in challenges with handovers, dropped data traffic and context, unreliable WLAN Access Points (APs), varying levels of service quality, or the like.